The start
by Avid fangirl for life
Summary: Emma and Regina high school AU. It's the first day of senior year and all Emma wants to do is get through the day without being singled out so she can get home to her son Henry. Then she goes and knocks down the most popular girl in school, Regina Mills.
1. Chapter 1

Emma Swan hung her head as she trudged down the corridor. She tried desperately not to make eye contact with any one, she didn't want any one to start shit because she was just too tired to deal with it. She supposed that she should be excited, what with it being her first day of senior year and everything, but she just couldn't muster the energy to even pretend to be. It had been a long night, Henry had been ill and kept her awake until four am.

At nearly 18 months, her beautiful baby boy was usually a perfect angel, but he had a new tooth coming, and that was never easy. He had screamed and screamed and then screamed some more after the asshat next door had banged on the wall and screamed at her to make it stop. Nothing she did calmed him at all, and she had found herself feeling rather useless, but she had tried and she had refused to give up.

He had settled in her arms, after what felt like an eternity and she had barely shut her eyes before her alarm was blaring again. Still, she was determined, she just had to get through the next nine months and then she'd be done, and her and Henry could get on with their lives. Still, it wasn't like she was doing the young mum thing on her own, she had David and Mary Margaret, her foster parents and they were pretty great. She had support and she had people who cared about her and Henry for the first time in her life.

Still, school was bad enough when it came to judgement, so she just hoped no body would start on her today. She could deal with looks, those were familiar and she barely noticed them any more. Although people talking about her behind her back hurt, or rather stung, it wasn't so bad. But if someone started to her face, she wasn't sure that she'd be able to control herself. Not if they said something bad about Henry, and that was what they all liked to talk about. Emma Swan, the slut who had a kid at fifteen. Gods what a joke, none of them knew what had happened, not that they cared, but still.

It's not like she regretted it, Henry was her whole world, he gave her a purpose and a drive that she'd never had before. She loved him like she'd never loved another person before, sure she was young, but she took care of him better than her own parents had ever taken care of her. She loved him more than they'd ever loved her.

She looked around the bustling corridor, trying to spot her best friends, Belle and Ruby. She knew they had to be here some where, she really wanted to find them before class. It had only been a fortnight since they'd last seen each other, it felt like a lot longer. Henry had finally taken his first steps during that time.

Finally, she spotted them at their lockers at the far end of the corridor, she eagerly set off through the crowd trying to reach them. Little did she realise, or at least not until much too late that there was a Regina Mills sized barrier in between her and them that she didn't have time to avoid. She tried to yell out in warning but it was too late, she crashed into her and sent them both sprawling across the polished floor of the rather full corridor.

Emma's glasses came off of her face and she heard them clatter to the floor, she was thankful they were protected ones, or she would have been completely and totally screwed. She picked them and herself up off of the floor to find everyone staring at her, as her cheeks heated she noticed that Regina, the most popular girl in school, was still sprawled on the floor. Clearing her throat, Emma ducked her head in embarrassment, trying to avoid the eyes she could feel on her and offered her hand to Regina.

She looked at the girl, who scrunched her nose in disgust and glared at her before taking her hand and allowing herself to be pulled up. Emma noticed Regina's attention wavering from glaring at her face to admiring her toned arms. When the girl was up on her own two feet again, Emma stooped to pick up Regina's book before handing it to her. She handed it to her with a quick and muttered "sorry" before taking off up the corridor. She could feel eyes on her back, almost burning into her, as she made her way further up the corridor but she didn't turn around.

She reached Ruby and Belle with five minutes until the first bell so they caught up quickly before making their ways to their respective classes. Emma had AP literature, a fact she was none too comfortable with as her foster mother was the senior classes' teacher. Still she strolled towards the classroom, trying not to arrive too early but wanting to be on time. Mary Margaret had been awfully good to her over the past two and a half years, she was the first family Emma had ever known and MM hadn't pushed her away or gotten rid of her when she found out that Emma was pregnant.

She reached the end of the corridor but before she could walk any further toward the class she found herself being called softly from behind. Turning around she found Regina Mills smirking at her in a way that made her stomach clench and her palms sweat. That smirk made her want to run for cover but at the same time she wanted to carry on standing there with the beautiful girl smirking at her.

The girl held something in her hand and as she made her way closer, Emma saw that it was her phone. She must have dropped it when she had sent both herself and Regina flying, she realised and her heart dropped. She knew from that smirk that Regina must of done something, but she didn't seem the type to outright humiliate her peers. She wondered what it could possibly be because it had to be something.

In less than a few seconds, a million different scenarios played through her head. Some ridiculous, and some not so ridiculous. It's not like there was anything incriminating on her phone, mainly just texts to her friends and pictures of her and Henry, mainly because she wanted to photograph every second they had together.

Still she wasn't expecting what came out of Regina's mouth as she hands her her phone back. In fact the statement made her freeze in her place as she awkwardly reached up to push her glasses back up the bridge of her nose.

"Call me sometime" it came out as so casual, so offhand that it left Emma gawping in her place for almost a full minute with her hand still poised to push up her glasses.

In the end Regina didn't leave it down to Emma to call her, because the same evening, just as a Emma was putting Henry down to bed, she felt her phone go off in her pocket and she couldn't help wondering who it could possibly be. When she saw it a smile lit up her face and after Henry had settled, she dat down and opened the text, if anything her smile got all the brighter.

Your son is almost as adorable as you :).


	2. Chapter 2

Your son is almost as adorable as you :).

Emma smiled as she stared down at the text. She bit her lip, wondering how she should reply to it. She was pretty sure that Regina was flirting with her, and it made her insanely happy that Regina had acknowledged her baby boy in such a way. It wasn't very often that people were positive towards Emma and her son, but Regina just had been.

As the reality of the situation sunk in, Emma realised that Regina Mills was flirting with her. The most popular girl in school was interested in her, Emma Swan, the teenage mum. Emma didn't know what it was that Regina saw in her, but in that moment Emma wouldn't let herself question it. She wallowed in the giddy happiness that surrounded her in that moment, let herself become amerced in it.

She still didn't know how to reply to the text. She wanted it to show a bit of her happiness,but at the same time she didn't want to seem overly eager. If she seemed overly eager it would either be conceived as endearing or desperate and at this stage she didn't want that, especially not the desperate part. Biting her lip she tapped out her reply before her thumb hovered over the send button. Hesitating for only a second, she took a deep breath and pressed send, sure she didn't want to be over eager but she was more than interested. She decided on something simple, or at least it was meant to be simple.

I disagree, but you're far cuter than me anyways :).

With that Emma checked over her home work, put her phone to the side for the night, resolving not to check it until morning, checked on Henry one final time and went to sleep.

Emma woke up to her alarm blaring less than a foot from her face. Blinking sleepily, she reached for her glasses to check the time, without them she may as well be blind. She found that it was only five am, but she had to get up so that she could go on her morning run. Almost subconsciously she checked her phone, all the while trying to convince herself that it wasn't because she was looking for a text from Regina.

Of course there wasn't one but she checked all the same. After checking on Henry to make sure that he was still fast asleep, she changed into her running gear, grabbed her iPod from her bedside table and set off. Emma had taken up running after Henry had been born, she had always enjoyed working out but found that it was an amazing stress reliever. Not only that but it helped her to straighten out her thoughts and focus. Another added bonus was that it kept her in shape, which didn't hurt.

As Emma ran, she thought about Regina. She didn't know why or when Regina had noticed her, but she was trying not to question it. Not that she was getting ahead of herself, she didn't know what Regina wanted from her but she wanted to give it time and see what happened. She had Henry to think of as well as herself, she wasn't sure her getting into a relationship would be good for him. Especially when she didn't get to spend as much time with him as she would like, what with work and school and everything.

Emma began to get lost in her thoughts, so much so that she didn't see the other runner coming towards her. She wasn't even aware of the other persons' presence until they had sent each other sprawling to the ground. Emma wrenched out her earbuds as she stood, thankful that her glasses had at least managed to stay on her face this time. She turned around to apologise and her the other person up before she realised it was once again Regina Mills.

Regina was wearing the same smirk as the day before and it made Emma's stomach tie itself in a knot, a butterfly filled one at that. This time around Regina accepted Emma's hand without any hesitation, and she allowed herself to be pulled up. Emma watched her carefully this time and she was certain she saw Regina's eyes focus on the tensing muscles of her arm for just a fraction of a second too long. As she regained her footing, Regina grabbed Emma' forearm as though she were going to lose her balance. It wouldn't of made Emma suspicious normally but she was certain Regina had grabbed the exact spot she had been examining mere moments before, the fact that she was still wearing that smirk of hers didn't do much in making Emma think it was an innocent move.

She couldn't help but notice how good Regina looked, which wasn't fair because she should look totally dishevelled. Not only was it before six in the morning but after the fall they had just taken no body should be able to look that good. No, Regina still looked freaking stunning.

As they stood face to face, Emma shifted awkwardly on her feet. She felt very uncomfortable, but she didn't know why. There was something in Regina's smirk, a smirk that hadn't once wavered, that made her feel nervous. She could literally feel her palms sweating as they hung limply by her side, but she couldn't very well wipe them without giving herself away. Regina finally spoke, not that it did anything to relieve the nervousness Emma had begun to feel.

"We have to stop meeting like this."

Emma bit her lip as her hand came up of its own accord to push her disturbed glasses further up the bridge of her nose. "Meeting like what?"

"On the ground, you know, the place you keep knocking me down to."

"Oh, uh, yeah, I'm sorry about that. It was a total accident, I mean that's obvious, what with me sending us both to the ground and all that. But still I'm sorry." As Emma began to ramble, yet more evidence of her nervousness, Regina began to smile. Not just any smile, but a genuine, brilliant, teeth showing smile and it made Emma's already knotted and full of butterflies stomach flutter even more.

"Not to worry, dear. I was merely joking. I'd better get going, I have to finish my run before school, I'll see you later?"

"Of course" Emma replied with almost no pause before going bright red. "I mean, sure if you want to, uhh bye then Regina." And with that Emma turned on her heel and began to jog in the opposite direction, still Emma could hear Regina chuckling behind her and although the sound filled her with delight she cursed herself for being such a bumbling idiot.

Later that morning, after Emma had dropped Henry at daycare and suffered through the most boring politics lesson she had ever had the displeasure of having to sit through, Emma found herself heading to her biology class. It would, of course, be extremely dull, due to both the fact that she knew no one in there and she hated science.

Still she trudged towards the classroom, more than thankful that her next period was a free one. She got to the door just as the bell that signified the beginning of class rang shrilly and found that all but one seat hand been taken. The only free one was beside none other than Regina Mills. Gods help her, she had no idea how she was going to survive this year when class hadn't even begun and Regina was already smirking at her as she stood in the doorway.

The professor cleared his throat and indicated towards Emma, so she moved towards the only spare seat in the class. She sat and took out her books, before busying herself with arranging them neatly. She took her time, but a person can only arrange a book and a notepad so many times before it becomes ridiculous, and she could feel Regina watching her in amusement.

As the professor began to speak at the front of the class in the most monotone voice Emma had ever heard, Regina leaned into her personal space so that she could murmur in Emma's ear.

"I believe this class is going to be my favourite this year, dear." Before turning back to the front of the class and bringing her pen to her lips and acting as though she were deeply enthralled by what the boring man at the front had to say. Oh god, she thought with an internal groan, what am I going to do?


	3. Chapter 3

Emma watched as Regina stood up at the end of yet another extremely long class (they seemed to drag by more and more every week, and yet she was never bored by them) and with a touch of her fingertips to Emma's wrist and a backward glance she was gone. They were only in December and with almost six months left of the year, she had no idea how she was supposed to survive Regina Mills.

She was thankful that it was the end of the day, that meant she could go and get Henry from his childminder and go home relatively early because for once she didn't have work. She began to walk out of the classroom, as she headed towards her locker to pick up her homework. She had a less than enthralling politics essay to complete and Emma refused to ask for an extension despite her 'circumstances'.

When she got there and looked up from the less than interesting tiles, she found none other than Regina Mills stood casually leaning against Emma's locker. She looked almost casual in the way she was leaning, but somehow Emma could tell that Regina was nervous. That in itself was enough to make Emma pause in her movements, Regina Mills had always been the epitome of poise, she'd never seem her as anything other than calm and collected and damned sexy before.

But before her was a version of Regina who looked truly nervous. Emma could still feel her wrist tingling from where Regina had grazed it with her fingertips. She could feel her stomach fluttering and knotting within her, but it wasn't painful, not in the slightest, it just made her feel slightly giddy in a rather strange way.

After her initial hesitation, she stepped towards her locker, and towards Regina. Smirking playfully she gently grasped Regina's biceps and after taking a moment to revel in the tensing of Regina's muscles beneath her hand, she gently encouraged Regina to the side. She was nice enough to they and pretend that she didn't hear the audible swallow that came from Regina at the contact, but her smirk widened slightly and became less playful. By now she was fully aware of the effect she had on Regina, or at least from what she could pick up. For all Emma knew whatever it was they were doing could just be one big joke to Regina, but Emma didn't think it was. She didn't think Regina would do that to anyone, she didn't think she'd do that to her. Besides, Regina seemed genuine in whatever it was she was doing (something which Emma was yet to work out) and from what Emma knew Regina wasn't that good of an actress.

As she opened her locker, she heard Regina shift off of the metallic surface and stand to the side. Emma could practically feel the nerves vibrating off of the normally calm girl. She wondered why she was so nervous, it kind of set her on edge, it seemed so out of place. More importantly she wondered what Regina had been doing, leaning against her locker, waiting for her at the end of the day. It was weird, it seemed like something a girlfriend or boyfriend would do, waiting for each other. Not even her friends waited for her at the end of the day.

Emma turned towards Regina and she waited for her to talk. Regina seems lost in her thoughts, like deeply lost in her thoughts. Whatever she was thinking about was making her extremely nervous as well, it was beginning to set Emma really on edge. The girl in front of her was chewing nervously on her bottom lip, worrying it so much that it looked to be on the verge of bleeding (not that Emma was staring at her lips or anything) and she was wringing her hands before her. Emma just stood before her wondering what it was that had her so worked up, but whatever it was wasn't that important. The important thing was that Regina, the one and only Regina Mills, looked so effected that Emma wanted to comfort her.

Almost of its own accord, her hand came up to grasp Regina's bicep once again, she squeezed it gently in what she hoped gave her comfort. Regina tensed up at the contact and seemed to come back to herself, in mere moments she was wearing her calm and composed facade as a mask once again. But she didn't pull away from Emma's arm, she barely moved, but Emma could have sworn she heard her sigh at the contact. Now beneath the mask, Emma could have sworn that she saw the emotions playing across Regina's face and flashing through her eyes.

Finally, after what seemed like years, but had in reality only been minutes at most, Emma watched as Regina made to speak. She watched as she took a deep breath in preparation, and as she exhaled she began to speak in a breathy, hesitant way.

"Hello Emma. This must seem strange, me waiting for you after class. I've been wanting to ask you something for a while and I finally decided that the, uh, time was right. I was wondering if you would like to go on a date with me on Sunday?"

Emma just stood in front of Regina trying not to gape at her as she took the words in. A stunned silence filled the air and Emma watched as Regina bit her lip nervously, she looked unsure of herself for the what Emma was sure was the first time in her life. She found it strangely endearing.

Regina liked her, as in actually liked her. She'd just asked her on a date, a real date. Emma had never been on a date before, whilst other teenagers dated and had fun she worked freaking hard to keep her grades up, earn money and look after her son. Nobody had ever been interested before, not many teenagers would be after they found out that she had a son. She could hardly believe this was happening, she had almost convinced herself that sued imagined the words.

Sure, she'd secretly been hoping for it since the line from Regina in the deserted hallway, but she'd never actually dared to think it would happen. But it had, Regina had just asked that. As in she'd really asked that, and Emma was sure it was genuine. Before her mind could process it, her mouth began to move.

"Uh yeah, that sounds great. I think I'd really like that. But are you sure?" Emma froze, she hadn't meant to ask. Oh fuck. Regina looked at her, her brow furrowed in confusion.

"What ever do you mean, dear?"

Emma kept her eyes fixed on the floor as she answered. "It's just that, I mean you're you and I'm me and well, I'd understand if, well, y'no..." She trailed off and finished with a shrug of her shoulders, scuffing her foot across the laminated flooring of the corridor, never once looking at Regina.

"Emma look at me." Emma complied when she heard the gentle tone of Regina's voice "I don't care what people think, I think you're amazing and I'm not ashamed to be seen with you."

Regina took a step closer to Emma as she spoke, tentatively joining her hand with Emma and intertwining their fingers. Emma's heart skipped a beat at those words. With a gentle, genuine smile Regina took a step back, leaving their fingers weaved together and gently tugged on Emma's arm as she led her towards the schools' entrance.

When they got there, they turned towards one another, thankful it was already Friday (as it meant they only had to wait two days), and prepared to say goodbye. Emma's heart sunk at the prospect, which was ridiculous, they hadn't been on a date yet so her feelings seemed preposterous. She looked down at Regina's face and found her eyes unconsciously flitting between the girls dark eyes and plump lips. Without really thinking about it, she spoke and when she realised what she had said, she flushed tomato red.

"I kinda really wanna kiss you at the moment."

Regina for her part just chuckled, but leaned in none the less. Emma's breath caught in her throat, but she found herself turning her head and leaning in. At the last second, just as she could feel Regina's breath on her face, the other girl turned her head and lightly brushed her lips against Emma's cheek before pulling back.

She looked at Emma's stunned expression and smirked to herself once again. It was such a common move for her face that she didn't really think about it anymore. Regina wanted to kiss the girl a lot, but she wanted to do it the right way.

Slowly, she took a step away from Emma's body and immediately felt the cold hit her full force, making her miss the blondes' warmth. Emma still looked stunned as Regina ran her thumb over Emma's knuckles before pulling her hand away.

"You'll just have to wait until after our first date, dear." With a last lingering look towards the blonde, she turned on her heels and headed towards the parking lot. She paused for a second before turning her head looking at the blonde over her shoulder, Emma still had a dazed look plastered across her face.

"I'll pick you up at seven on Sunday, goodbye Emma."

As Regina walked away, Emma felt her daze fall away as she watched the brunette walk away from her, a small smile spread across her face, blooming into a fully fledged grin after a moment.

Regina Mills had asked her on a date.


	4. Chapter 4

Emma took a deep great to try and steady her nerves in preparation for the talk she was about to have with Mary Margaret an David. Henry was settled on her hip, content to babble wordlessly to himself with the occasional 'mama' thrown into the mix of other sounds as he tugged on Emma's blonde locks.

Since Henry had been born, Emma hadn't had much of a life in social terms. She hadn't been much of a social butterfly in the first place, and nor did she mind because she would much rather be at home with Henry, he gave her more of a reason to stay at home. It had surprised her at first, after he had been born, just how much she had loved him. She had wanted to spend every spare moment she could with him, even if it meant she never got what was known as the full teen experience. Henry was so much better than that anyway.

Henry was the most important aspect of her life, that was a given, and she had thought carefully over how bringing a stranger who could up and leave at any moment would effect him. Everyone she had ever cared about had left her or kicked her into the dirt at some point. Emma hoped, no Emma knew, deep down in her gut, that Regina was different.

Still, Emma was beyond nervous about broaching the subject of a date with her foster parents. She was sure they would be supportive, but she didn't want to disappoint them. They had been nothing short of doting and supportive after she had found out about her pregnancy, although she had been a pain in the ass. Most adults would have labelled her as a problem child and would have either sent her packing or turned tails and run. They had done neither, they had taken Emma under their wing and loved her like she was their own. She would always be eternally grateful, especially to Mary Margaret.

When Emma had found out that she was pregnant, her whole world had come crashing down around her. She was fifteen, alone and abandoned and scared. She had been sat on her bed shaking and sobbing with that stupid fucking pee stick clutched in her hand when MM had found her. She'd only taken the test because she'd realised she had been missing her period. By this point, Emma was already going on for four months pregnant, but MM hadn't said a word. Not once had she asked for anything that Emma wasn't fully peppered to give. She had been thee the whole time, and every moment since, without ever throwing a judgemental or disappointed look her way.

She owed Mary Margaret and David so much, and more than anything Emma wanted their approval. Although they weren't aware of the full story of what had happened with Neal, Henry's father, they did know that when he had found out about Emma's pregnancy, he had run. As far away as his feet would fucking carry him. What a coward, Emma thought. It was his loss though, Henry was the best thing to ever happen to her. She supposed being abandoned served her right for getting involved with a much older man. He was lucky she wasn't the vindictive type, or she could have gotten him busted, but Emma would never of done that.

Steeling herself, she readjusted her grip on Henry and stepped into the quaint but cosy sitting room. As she entered both MM and David looked her way and directed loving smiles towards her. After all if their time together, they had become a family and Emma was their daughter. She had never known being a part of a family could feel so wonderful. Their smiles only served to make Emma's heart beat even harder against her rib cage.

As though sensing her nerves, Henry brought his chubby hands up to curl his mothers' face as he blew raspberries in her direction. She smiled down at him, cooing her approval, even Emma could hear the love in her tone. It struck her as odd that there was a tiny person in her world, a person she had only had for such a short while but whom she would move sun and earth for, if that was what he asked her to do.

Coming back into the moment, Emma cleared her throat and set Henry on the floor, where he happily began to crawl around. She sat in the arm chair opposite a Mary Margaret and David and shifted awkwardly, fidgeting from side to side as she tried to find the right words. She considered it her own personal curse that she was awful with words and feelings and emotions. She was pretty much completely fucking inept with the of the time it made her seem stunted and it made her feel highly fucking uncomfortable. Upon seeing this display, Mary Margaret leaned forward with a furrowed brow and reached across the small wooden coffee table to place a comforting hand on Emma's forearm.

"Emma, what's wrong?"

"I, uhh, have something to tell you. It's nothing bad, or anything, I hope. But I want to make sure you guys are okay with it before I give it the go ahead."

"You're rambling again sweetheart" Mary Margaret interjected kindly, a knowing smile gracing her face.

"Sorry." Emma gulped "I, uh, I have a date on Sunday. Are you guys okay with that?" She watched nervously as Mary Margaret and David shared q look, they seemed so in tune all the time, almost as though they could read one another's minds. A look of understanding passed between them before they broke into identical grins and turned back towards Emma.

In that moment, they looked oddly similar, both were sorting the look of a child whose Christmas had come early. Emma couldn't help but smile back, it was so infectious.

Mary Margaret smile grew and she spoke in a breathless rush. "So Regina finally asked you out? Of course, I'm so happy! We're so happy for you! This is so exciting!" In that moment, as Mary Margaret sat there looking as though she was ready to jump for joy, Emma's nerves all but melted away. MM looked as though she was barely able to stop herself from clapping from glee. Henry seemed to sense this, as he chose that moment to crawl towards the coffee table and haul himself all while giggling and gurgling happily. Emma grinned, she couldn't wait until Sunday.

Emma was running late, extremely late. It was already quarter to seven, and she hadn't even managed t finish getting Henry dressed for bed yet. She was just finishing putting on his dinosaur all in one as a knock to the front door reverberated around the cottage. Caught between feeling flustered and excited, Emma perched a sleepy Henry on her hip as she headed towards the front door.

She wasn't even close t being ready, her toddler wasn't even in bed yet, so she would have to invite Regina in and apologise. She hesitated for only a moment, both to try and tamp down on her nerves and to check on Henry. He was asleep with his head nestled into the crook of her neck, she could feel the drool seeping down her front into the collar of her tank top, which she insisted on wearing despite it being the middle of December. She couldn't summon any annoyance, she knew it was his favourite way to sleep, and she opened the door.

As she caught sight of Regina she could feel her jaw go slack as she gaped, it practically hit the ground. She heard Regina chuckle, but she still wasn't over how utterly adorable Regina looked. Regina was wearing a fitted coat, which made Emma's mind wander, but not too far, she was trying to be respectful as it was their first date. Apart for the coat, Regina looked beyond adorable, with a matching hat, mittens and scarf set in cream. She was smiling, but when she zeroed in on Henry nestled in his mothers arms and after she took in Emma's flustered state, her smile grew beyond measure and morphed into a grin.

Emma finally managed to speak "Hi, I'm sorry, the little fella made me run late. Would you like to come in? I'll be ready in a minute."

It never failed to surprise Regina that when Emma spoke, even if she wasn't rambling it seemed as youth she were, it was rather endearing.

"Of course dear, no need to apologise. Please take your time, we're in no rush. I've waited quite a while for this to happen, a few more minutes surely won't kill me." Emma's smile grew and she stepped aside to let Regina in. She one handedly helped her to get her coat off, all the while smiling when she saw that Regina's hat was colour coded to match the sweater she was wearing. After showing her to the sitting room, thankfully finding it devoid of her foster parents, she left Regina there with a reassurance of "I'll only be a minute."

After gently placing Henry down in his cot, she changed into fur lined skinnies, her combat boots and one of her less dorky jumpers. She paused for a moment in front of her dresser to check her hair, before heading over to Henry's cot to place a tender kiss to her little boys forehead "I'll be back before you know it, little man." At the bottom of the stairs she had practically bounded down, she paused once again as the full reality of the situation hit her. She was going on a date with the most popular girl in school, a girl she liked a lot, a whole awful lot. A girl she was pretty sure liked her back just as much.

She had no idea what they were about to do, she just hoped that in the future she'd have no reason to regret it. Still, she'd gotten this far, for once she wasn't going to let herself talk herself out of this one. She was going to go through with it because it was something she really wanted. Smiling to herself, she walked towards the sitting room, where she had left Regina less than fifteen minutes before, to find her deep in conversation about God knows what with Mary Margaret and David.

This only made her smile grow as she softly cleared her throat from the doorway as she leaned against the frame. Regina turned towards her with a smile that made Emma's heart flutter like a bloody humming bird in her chest. Hesitantly she held out a hand for Regina to take, and with another smile she found that it was accepted.

"Ready to go?"


	5. Chapter 5

As Regina and Emma walk along the road, neither of them try to unclasp their hands, despite the cold. Emma finds something romantic in the action, it's comforting to think that for once she isn't being treated like a social pariah. Regina doesn't treat her like she is a taboo, she doesn't feel odd or uncomfortable for once.

As they walk, Emma can't help but wonder what it is that Regina has in store. After all, Storybrooke is an extremely small, rather quiet town. Emma's not sure what they could be doing that constitutes as a date. Then again, she's not exactly well versed in date etiquette, Neal hadn't ever taken her out. He had always said that he could get in trouble if they were seen in public together. At the time Emma hadn't understood why, it wasn't until after she had gotten pregnant that she had realised how wrong the whole situation had been.

Regina's hand feels nice in Emma's, it fits nicely and Emma can't help but notice how soft it is. Holding hands with Regina seems familiar, which is weird because it's a totally new occurrence between the two of them.

As they walk along Main Street, Emma can feel Regina pulling her closer, until their sides are almost touching. It's a gentle action, it makes Emma ache for actual physical contact. The idea of physical contact with the beautiful girl at her side, though much longed for, sends Emma's heart into a furious frenzy until it hammers against her chest like a hummingbird trying to escape.

She can feel her nerves beginning to build as Regina's side brushes against hers, but she can't bring herself to move away. As they stroll down Main Street, although Emma still has absolutely no idea where they are going, although they are heading towards the docks, Regina's arm slowly encircles Emma's waist. The dark hides the deep blush colouring Emma's features but if Regina's smirk is anything to go by, she knows the effect that she is having on Emma. Emma hasn't been this close to another person since Neal but she feels far more comfortable with Regina's arm around her, far safer, then she ever did when she was close to Neal.

Emma finds herself leaning in to Regina's side, almost burying herself in the sense of comfort and safety she feels. Since Henry had been born she had grown so used to playing the rule of comforter that the sensation of being safe in another person's arms has grown foreign to Emma. She finds it feels extremely nice, if Regina's face is anything to go by she's enjoying it as much as Emma is.

Regina's arm guides Emma around a corner onto a more dimly lit street that leads towards the harbour. She can hear the waves lapping against the shore, it's relaxing and Emma feels herself relaxing immediately. One look at Regina's face confirms that this was why they were here, which means that she knows what Emma enjoys. The idea that she had taken the time to observe Emma in order to see what she enjoys and what helps her relax makes Emma's heart warm.

It means that Regina had been interested in her for quite some time, that coupled with the fact that Regina had been anticipating this makes Emma's heart skip and swell. Sure, Emma had had a thing for her for quite a while, but the idea that not only did Regina like her back, but she was genuinely interested in her, enough that she had paid such avid attention to little details of Emma's character, made Emma's heart do a weird skipping dance in her chest. No one had ever cared about Emma that much in that way before, she kind of finds it difficult to believe.

Once they reach the sea front, Regina leads her with the arm she still has around Emma to a bench that her and Henry normally sit in in the warmer weather. Underneath it sits a wicker picnic basket, Emma turns to Regina with a questioning look on her face, the confusion evident on her face sends Regina into a bout of lighthearted laughter. Her laugh makes Emma feel as though she has melted into a puddle at Regina's feet. Regina's laugh is low and smooth, liquid chocolate in its consistency and as soon as she hears it, it takes its place on Emma's list of favourite sounds.

"We're having a picnic, dear." Emma grins at her, it's a very thoughtful idea and it shows Emma just how much thought Regina had put into the night. Emma knows that she, when she plans their second date (not to jump ahead of herself or anything) will have to put just as much effort in to show just how much she wants whatever this is to work as much as Regina must.

"That sounds wonderful. How did you know about here?" Even in the limited light she can see the fierce, red blush starting to bloom in Regina's cheeks as she leads Emma to the bench so they can sit.

"I... saw you here with you son a few times in the summer, and I asked Miss Lucas about here. I hope that's okay." Regina bites her lip in what Emma can tell is a nervous fashion, Emma finds it utterly endearing and she grins once again.

"Regina, you've got nothing to worry about. I think it's very sweet that you went to such lengths to make this mean so much." She can see the relief as it sweeps across Regina's face.

"I'm glad. Can I ask you a question?"

"Of course, you can ask anything."

"I was wondering, why does this place in particular, mean so much to you?" She can feel Regina's hesitation behind the question, it's the only evidence that's she's still nervous.

A soft smile grows on Emma's face as she remembers "oh, it's just, this is where I decided to keep Henry. I came here to think, and I decided that I had to keep him, because I already loved him, and this place means so much because it's the best decision I've ever made. I've never once regretted it."

Emma can see the tears in Regina's eyes and she raises a hand to wipe them away, Regina is normally so closed off, her being vulnerable with Emma means so much more than Emma knows how to express. Regina's hand comes up to hold Emma's to her face. Her eyes meet Emma's and Emma can feel herself starting to fall, she's in deep but she doesn't want it to stop. Quite the opposite in fact, she's almost ready to throw herself into the feeling head first.

"And you don't mind sharing here with me?"

Emma can feel herself smiling as her thumb begins to caress Regina's cheek.

"There's no one I can think of who I'd rather share it with."

Both Emma and Regina begin to lean in and as their lips meet Emma can feel her heart pounding in her chest. She can feel herself starting to fall, and although it may be too early for that, she knows that Regina is a girl she doesn't mind falling for. Not if she will be at the bottom of that fall to catch her with welcoming arms.


End file.
